KIEV, Ukraine – Two explosions hit supermarkets in eastern Ukraine, injuring 14 people on a busy shopping day in this ex-Soviet republic, emergency and police officials said.
The blasts occurred around noon Saturday in two supermarkets near one another in the city of Kharkiv, a duty officer at the Kharkiv branch of the Emergency Situations Ministry said, reading from a statement.
The explosions appeared to have been caused by homemade bombs planted in the lockers where customers store packages, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said.
Two people were injured in one of the supermarket blasts, and at least six in another, emergency officials said. Ukraine's Interfax news agency reported that 14 people were injured, but that at least seven were treated at the scene and released, and cited a hospital official as saying that none of the injuries was life-threatening.
It was not immediately possible to explain the discrepancies in the numbers.
Supermarkets throughout Ukraine were crowded Saturday as shoppers prepared to celebrate the Orthodox Christian Easter holiday Sunday. Ukraine's Channel 5 showed footage of shattered glass at the Silno supermarket.
The Interior Ministry said the explosive devices appeared to be homemade, but cautioned that the investigation was ongoing. No one answered the phone at Kharkiv's Interior Ministry office. The explosions occurred within about eight minutes of each other.
The motive behind the blasts was not immediately clear. Sometimes business disputes in Ukraine have turned violent, and Ukrainian media reported that an explosive device had been found at one of the supermarkets a month ago.
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